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Monday, September 23, 2013

When my brother and I were little, our mom often made canned biscuit donuts. You know... the ones that you make by frying canned biscuits. My mom says that when she was younger, they would sometimes get these for lunch. Gotta love that! My brother and I loved when we got to have these. We each either had the job of pressing out the dough and cutting holes OR shaking them in the bag of powdered sugar. We loved both jobs. I never remember having a preference.We always had these with powdered sugar but cinnamon sugar (regular granulated sugar mixed with a little cinnamon) would also be great. You sometimes find these type of donuts on Chinese buffet restaurants although they aren't shaped like donuts. Not an incredibly healthy choice for breakfast, I know, but frugal and DELICIOUS! And FUN!I don't particularly like buying canned biscuits. I'm always a fan of making it at home instead of using some over -processed item that you find at the store. It occurred to me the other day that since I make Homemade Biscuits, I should be able to recreate these donuts with a homemade version. I used the same "technique" my mom did (by pressing them out on a sheet of tin foil and cutting the holes). No rolling! The only difference is that I mixed up my own batch of homemade biscuit dough instead of using a can of biscuits.This recipe is basically half of my Homemade Biscuit recipe. It made about 8 donuts and 8 holes. Perfect for Saturday mornings!Here's how I made Biscuit Donuts - Homemade AT HOME MY WAY:

Biscuit Donuts - Homemade

1 cup all purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 Tablespoons shortening/margarine

1/2 cup milk

powdered sugar (approximately 1 cup or a little more)

A little extra flour for handling the dough - initially

Foil

oil for frying (I fried mine in about 1 inch of oil in a pan)

Ingredients for the Dough:

Mix the flour, baking powder & salt in a small mixing bowl. Cut in the margarine/shortening/butter (whichever you use). I cut mine in with a fork until crumbly. Dump in the milk and stir until well combined. Sprinkle with a little flour just so you can pinch off smaller balls of dough (the doughnuts).

Mine looked like this:

I pulled off a sheet of foil and sprayed it with cooking spray (you could also butter the foil if you don't have cooking spray).

Pinch the dough into balls about the size of ping pong balls:

Pat them out on the sprayed/buttered foil (about the size of a fat cookie):

Cut holes using around item. I used the top from a spice bottle:

Using a deep skillet or large saucepan, put 1 inch of oil in the bottom. Bring to medium heat. If you drop a single drip of water in and it sizzles, it's ready. Fry until you see browning at the edges. (You might move them around a little to make sure they don't sink and stick when you first put them in the pan.) Then flip:

Remove from frying oil and drain for a few seconds:

Now, put about a cup of powdered sugar in a small plastic or paper bag. Shake the donuts until covered to your liking.

They're ready! Perfect. Not too sweet and no rolling needed, AND... no trips out or to the store! My kind of donuts!

Friday, September 20, 2013

One of the things I clean the most with at my house is window cleaner. You know... Windex. Except I haven't bought actual Windex for years!I used to follow a favorite blog, Grocery Cart Challenge, but life must have gotten busy for Gayle because I don't think she's posted on her blog since April. Nevertheless, her wisdom is still helping me every single day.I use window cleaner to clean my windows, in my house and in my car. I clean my countertops with it, my doors, my door knobs, my faucets, my sinks. I sometimes even wet a mop and just spray window cleaner on my tile floor for mopping. This recipe SMELLS just like Windex. It CLEANS just like Windex. It LOOKS pretty much just like Windex. The only thing it doesn't do is cost as much as Windex. Windex costs around $3.50 per bottle. Mine comes to about $.30. That's per BOTTLE!This window cleaner will not streak and works just as good as the store bought stuff. My husband is the biggest critic when it comes to window cleaner. He didn't want to admit that my homemade cleaner worked just like HIS Windex, but he ran out of the real stuff one day when he was cleaning the windows on his truck so he used MINE. He was sold! Works like charm! I don't know about you but if I can save money and use things I normally already have in my pantry, I'm doing it!Here's how I make homemade window cleaner AT HOME MY WAY:

Homemade Window Cleaner

1 empty spray bottle (your old Windex bottle if you want)

1/8 cup White (clear) Ammonia

1/4 cup Isopropyl Alcohol

1 small squirt of dish soap (I use Dawn)

Water

Instructions:Put the Ammonia in the bottle (you could use a permanent marker to mark the Ammonia level on your bottle for filling next time). Add the alcohol (again marking that level on your bottle.) Add a small squirt of liquid dish soap and fill the bottle with water. Shake good. You're done.Now go clean something and just think of all of the money you have saved!

This young man (Roadie) is the reason I have to clean my doors so much. He and his buddy, the dog (Brandy). You will be surprised how much this cleaner even smells like the real thing! It's okay Roadie and Brandy. I love you even if you keep my doors smudged!

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Rebecca made these adorable and delicious Caramel Apple Hand Pies last night. These are definitely something I've wanted to try for a while although the recipes I have seen for small pies have used a muffin tin for the tiny pies. These are even more perfect because you don't need anything but a napkin to gobble them down. They would be perfect for potlucks, lunches, breakfast on the run. YUM! The possibilities are endless. You could make them as homemade poptarts using chocolate chips, jam, applesauce, apple butter. You could make other types of hand pies like blackberry, blueberry, PEACH!Rebecca said that these took no time at all to make since she used a store bought pie crust. I found it super special that she made these since she doesn't even really eat sweets or desserts very often. Hey, she even took great step-by-step pictures. She's a blogger in the making! These were so good that she told me she had to go back for round 2! So far, the only thing I think she forgot was to bring her dear old mother one (or two, or three LOL)! She said the combination of caramel and apple was just over the top!Here's how Rebecca made Caramel Apple Hand Pies AT HOME HER WAY:

Caramel Apple Hand Pies

2 cups small diced (peeled) Granny Smith apples

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons all purpose flour

8 store-bought soft caramels, roughly cubed into smaller pieces.

Egg wash (1 egg lightly whisked with 1 Tablespoon water)

1 storebought rolled Pie Crust (sold by the canned biscuits)

Instructions:

PREHEAT OVEN TO 425 DEGREES first thing!

Peel and chop the apple in very small pieces. In a small bowl, stir together the apples, lemon juice, cinnamon, sugar and flour. Stir until well blended. Set aside.

Let the pie crust come to room temp about 15 minutes before rolling it out. Roll it out flat on a well-floured surface.

Using a glass, cup, or approximately 3-inch cookie cutter, cut out as many circles as you can until you run out of dough. (Make sure you have an even number because each pie takes two circles.)

Place six of the circles on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. Spoon a small amount of the apple mixture into the center of each circle, leaving a border around the filling. Top with one or two small cubes of caramel (see here). Top with a circle of dough. Use a fork to seal the edges all around.

Brush each pie with the egg wash and using a sharp knife, cut two small vents in the top of each pie. Sprinkle with sugar (optional).

Bake in a PREHEATED oven at 425 degrees for 15 minutes.

Try to hold yourself back and let them cool before gobbling them up! The filling might be HOT!

Enjoy!

Gina

Caramel Apple Hand Pies

2 cups small diced (peeled) Granny Smith apples

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons all purpose flour

8 store-bought soft caramels, roughly cubed into smaller pieces.

Egg wash (1 egg lightly whisked with 1 Tablespoon water)

1 storebought rolled Pie Crust (sold by the canned biscuits)

INSTRUCTIONS:

PREHEAT OVEN TO 425 DEGREES first thing!

Peel and chop the apple in very small pieces. In a small bowl, stir together the apples, lemon juice, cinnamon, sugar and flour. Stir until well blended. Set aside.

Let the pie crust come to room temp about 15 minutes before rolling it out. Roll it out flat on a well-floured surface.

Using a glass, cup, or approximately 3-inch cookie cutter, cut out as many circles as you can until you run out of dough. (Make sure you have an even number because each pie takes two circles.)

Place six of the circles on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. Spoon a small amount of the apple mixture into the center of each circle, leaving a border around the filling. Top with one or two small cubes of caramel (see here). Top with a circle of dough. Use a fork to seal the edges all around.

Brush each pie with the egg wash and using a sharp knife, cut two small vents in the top of each pie. Sprinkle with sugar (optional).

Bake in a PREHEATED oven at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Cool as filling will be HOT!

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

The weather has been glorious lately. Beautiful days and even more perfect nights! We LOVE to get together with some dear friends and sit around a fire on Friday and Saturday nights. Our friends have the perfect spot, back behind some trees in a little clearing. Lots of good laughs, talking, solving the world's (and our own) problems, a little drinking...and lots of EATING goes on there... LOL.My friend and I agreed as we were getting the fire going last Friday night that this was OUR kind of camping! A fire, some chairs and blankets, fun food like hotdogs and smores, and OUR OWN BED AND A SHOWER at the end of the night! No tents, bugs, bath houses and dirt! Love that!Our friends really put out a spread for us Friday night. They had veges and dip, chips and home canned salsa, smores, hotdogs, brownies and this delicious dip. This "bean dip" is one of our favorite things to eat when we get together. (Well... we have also been known to devour a tub of Dean's Dip with Fritos on occasion ha-ha!)Our friends' daughter normally makes this for us. She has been making it since she was pretty young. I love that girl! We all agree that no one makes it quite as good as SHE does!Here is how to make OUR FAVORITE Bean Dip AT HOME MY WAY:

Favorite Bean Dip

1 or 2 (8 oz) cream cheese (low fat or fat free is fine)

1 can black beans

1 can Rotel

Grated sharp cheddar cheese (2 cups or less)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a collander or strainer, drain the Rotel and the black beans - all together. Stir to combine. Soften the cream cheese and spread in the bottom of an oven proof baking dish. Top with the rotel/black beans mixture. Sprinkle with cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees (uncovered) until the cheese is all melted.

Serve with tortilla chips.

We started the night with this huge pile of stuff to burn:

Here is the great spread of yummies!

Let's get this party started:

Good friends, perfect weather. We are so blessed! Ahh... after a long week, it doesn't get any better than this:

Monday, September 16, 2013

Rebecca had us over yesterday for BBQ. Her house is looking great and we had a nice time. It was drizzling rain (which NEVER happens) and a nice breeze was blowing through her windows. Ahhhh! Doug barbecued the burgers, brats, and hotdogs. He also got out the fish fryer and made some of Rebecca's favorite fries (which are nothing more than frozen, crinkle-cut fries, but when fried outside seem to be something super special). Rebecca made her famous RANCH DIP (recipe coming soon) and I brought this Chocolate Zucchini Cake.Yea... yea...you can tell in the picture that I kind of like Real Whipped Cream! LOL. This is one of my favorite cakes to serve unfrosted. My mom started making this cake when we moved to Missouri. We had never had zucchini squash in any form until we moved here. I'm not sure where she got the recipe but I remember eating this cake often during summers in Missouri. We only ate yellow summer squash in Florida and we served those as Stewed Squash. We were missing out because there are some great desserts to be made with zucchini (like Zucchini Cobbler, zucchini cake, zucchini bread). This cake was a great, not-too-heavy dessert, and used up some of the fabulous zucchini that my sister-in-law shared with me (since I can't seem to get any squash from my garden thanks to the deer, the groundhog, and the turtle).Here's how I made Chocolate Zucchini Cake AT HOME MY WAY - it seems like lots of ingredients but... it's so worth it:

Friday, September 13, 2013

TGIF! I'm off work on Fridays and very much enjoy getting to sleep in a little bit, go to the YMCA for a little exercise, and then eat some breakfast as I get started with my housekeeping routine, laundry, stripping beds... you know how it goes when us moms get a day "off" LOL. I have been battling with some hip pain recently but this week I invested in some new running shoes and mixed up my exercise routine by running only a little bit and using some of the other machines to try to spare my poor hip from too much strain. (It's feeling great by the way so I am hopeful..)As my REWARD... LOL... because the MAIN reason I run is.. of course so I can eat MORE....I made these delicious pumpkin waffles. My husband isn't much of a waffle eater but I really love waffles! Even though I'm the only waffle eater, I make them anyway. I freeze the leftovers and with my friend, the toaster, have a great, homemade breakfast.. even on busy work mornings.We have been having tremendous heat here in Missouri. Most days for the past three weeks have been up close to 100 degrees. Everything is scorched and baked, including me. A cool front moved into Missouri last night and we woke up to a gorgeous 59 degrees! Ahhh!! Feels so good. What better way to celebrate cooler weather and a day off than a good run and a delicious breakfast.I opened my recipe cabinet to find my pancake recipe. I figured I would modify my Perfect Pancake Recipe to make some waffles. But low and behold... I found a handwritten recipe for PUMPKIN Waffles! I have NO IDEA where I got this recipe but trust me when I tell you that these waffles are some of the most delicious things you will ever eat!They are lightly spiced with cinnamon and cloves, and turn out airy and not heavy at all! Sometimes homemade waffles turn out heavy. Not these little jewels. I'm not a huge fan of cloves but in this recipe, these waffles taste like perfect gingerbread (even though I didn't use any ginger.. go figure).Make a double batch so you will have plenty for the freezer. You will want to eat more of these delicious waffles during the crisp, fall mornings ahead.Here's how I made Pumpkin Waffles AT HOME MY WAY:

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Last night my daughter came over. She had some laundry to do (her Dad hasn't gotten her washer/dryer hooked up yet in her house). We both decided to just warm up some spaghetti that I had in the fridge. One can never really eat enough spaghetti, right? Rebecca told me that she has figured out that she really loves Chex Mix, that she likes to eat it for breakfast. She's never been much of a sweet eater (unlike her mother, the donut queen LOL). She also said that she really just likes the cereal part of Chex Mix so she decided to make her own. Making mama proud, she decided to make some AT HOME HER WAY!Rebecca brought with her to my house a box of Rice Chex and a recipe to make Chex Mix in the crockpot. Hmm... I have always loved Chex Mix. For me, it was always one of those things you ate at holidays and like caramel corn, all of that cooking the liquids, pouring over the dry stuff, mixing in a bowl, and baking in the oven, just seemed like too many steps... and too many DISHES!Rebecca's recipe sounded easy. You mix the liquid ingredients in a bowl, put the cereal in the crockpot, pour over the liquid, and cook. That certainly sounded much easier than I ever anticipated.Rebecca only used Rice Chex in her Chex Mix last night. But, you could add all of your favorite Chex Mix ingredients, like nuts, pretzels, etc.This turned out great and we will certainly be making more of this great snack. I would say it would be perfect for Mizzou Football tailgating, potlucks, and overall snacking.

Combine the butter/margarine, worchestershire sauce and spices in a box. Mix well. Place cereal and any nuts, pretzels, crackers in your crockpot. Pour over the liquid mixture. Stir well. Cook on low 2.5 hours with a lid. Stir occasionally, removing the lid completely to stir to allow some of the steam to escape. If your mixture isn't dry towards the end of the cook-time, just remove the lid, and stir, and allow just a little more cooking time.

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

There is a very special someone in my life who is sick. He is very, very sick and we are praying for God to give him hope, strength, AND healing. What he needs is a miracle and each night I pray and have faith that God does grant miracles. The special someone in my life is a doctor. He gives sight to the blind. He is a father, a husband, a son, a brother, a brother-in-law, son-in-law, friend and mentor. He is valiantly fighting to live and is teaching us much about strength, perseverance, and love.When someone you care about is sick, you want to help. You want to help the sick person feel better and also try to provide some comfort and lessen the workload on the person's family. I love making homemade meals and since cooking is something I can do, I wanted to make a meal for my special someone and his family.To me, first and foremost, I wanted to make something that they all loved. It's easy to whip up a tuna casserole but if the family you are taking it to doesn't eat tuna casserole, that doesn't do much good. They would be grateful for any gift of a homemade meal, but even better if it is a meal they relish.I don't have any new recipes for this post, but wanted to share the meal that I delivered to my special someone. I wanted to take something that all of them would enjoy. I delivered the meal right after the children of the family arrived home from school and just in time for my special someone and his wife to arrive home from a long, difficult, and exhausting day of various appointments. They called to tell me upon arriving home that in the day of stress and worry, they had forgotten I was bringing dinner. They had considered picking up a pizza on the way home but nothing really sounded good to our special someone so they decided to play it by ear at home. Upon walking into their home, their eyes settled on the counters loaded with dishes that I had delivered. The yummy smells wafted to their hungry tummies. They were so relieved and excited to see all of the food. My gift was well received and I couldn't have ever felt as much joy as I felt when they called to tell me how they had forgotten that I was bringing dinner so it was a special and much needed surprise that day.My special someone was exhausted so as his children made their plates, he rested a little while. He called me himself later in the evening to thank me for the meal after he had had a chance to eat. My special someone loves food! He always loves what I cook. He hasn't been able to eat huge amounts of food but his wife shared that he had eaten a little of everything I brought that day. His joy and his call to me were the true gifts that day. Sometimes food is a great vessel of the love we feel for each other. Here are the items I chose to make for my special someone and his family AT HOME MY WAY:

Fruit Salad (recipe coming soon, but it is simply a combination of canned peach pie filing, canned mandarin oranges, canned chunk pineapple, and bananas). I thought this might be a nice, light item which would last well in the fridge for my special someone.

Brownies - I used boxed brownies because I had so many other things going but these BROWNIES WITHOUT A BOX (recipe HERE) would be great for meal taking:

I also brought with me this Sweet Tea. It is the one thing that my special someone especially LOVES. The recipe is HERE:

﻿I tried to make something that each person of the family would enjoy. I also brought items without hidden ingredients as I know this family isn't very adventuresome with their eating. I tried to send items that would reheat well for eating as leftovers and I only used foil pans and the new Chinette micro/oven proof dishware so that the dishes could be tossed in the trash and not washed to return.

I highly recommend sharing your cooking talents with others. Hey, even if you know someone who isn't sick or stressed out but might appreciate your cooking. Who wouldn't love a catered, home cooked meal? Talk about feeling the LOVE!

Monday, September 9, 2013

This dip and I go WAY BACK. I cannot remember when I first started making it. It is delicious and is the perfect summer BBQ potluck dish or addition to any holiday dinner. I even make it as a little special something to serve with lunch. I serve it with almost any fresh fruit, but our favorites are apples, strawberries, and grapes. One day last week, I even brought the marshmallow fluff and cream cheese to work with me. By lunch, the cream cheese was soft and I stirred it all together for a treat to go with my apple. I've kept it in the fridge at work eating a little bit each day. It would also be perfect for sending to school in a lunchbox!I remember that I helped my aunt prepare food for my cousin's wedding many "moons ago" and we bought big blocks of cream cheese from Sam's (as big as blocks of Velveeta) and made tons of this fruit dip. I don't think we had a single bit of leftovers. Once you start eating it, you just can't get enough!Since my girls both like this dip and since it's easy, frugal, and quick to prepare, I wanted to make sure to include this recipe on my blog. They ARE my two favorite followers after all!Here's how I make Family Favorite Fruit Dip AT HOME MY WAY:

About Me

I am mom to two beautiful young ladies, now almost all grown up! I married my high school sweetheart and we couldn't be happier! I love to find ways to do it all myself, whether its making a bar of soap or a biscuit. My kids think I've lost it, but I just like doing it "At Home My Way."